Data processing method, data processing apparatus, data processing system, and recording medium having recorded therein data processing program

ABSTRACT

A data processing method for processing a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data includes: a reference data changing step of changing reference data (data that is selected from a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data for each unit-element, and to be compared with each piece of unit-processing data); and a reference data extending step of extending new reference data which is the reference data after change by the reference data changing step to a unit-element other than a unit-element for which the reference data has been changed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to digital data processing, andparticularly relates to a method for processing time series data.

Description of Related Art

As a method for detecting an abnormality of equipment or an apparatus,there is known a method of measuring a physical quantity (e.g., length,angle, time, speed, force, pressure, voltage, current, temperature, flowrate, etc.) which shows an operation state of the equipment or theapparatus by use of a sensor or the like, and analyzing time series dataobtained by arranging measurement results in order of occurrence. Whenthe equipment or the apparatus performs the same operation in the samecondition, if there is no abnormality, the time series data changes inthe same way. Therefore, by comparing a plurality of pieces of timeseries data which change in the same way to each other to detectabnormal time series data and analyzing the abnormal time series data,it is possible to specify a place where the abnormality occurs and thecause of the abnormality. Also, in recent years, computer dataprocessing capability has been improved remarkably. There have thus beenmany cases where, even when an amount of data is enormous, necessaryresults can be obtained in practical time. This also shows that theanalysis of time series data is becoming active.

For example, in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, time seriesdata can be obtained in various processes. Therefore, also in the fieldof the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, analysis of time seriesdata, display of time series data on a screen, and the like, have beenperformed.

In connection with the present invention, Japanese Laid-Open PatentPublication No. 2017-83985 discloses an invention of a time series dataprocessing apparatus that displays time series data in a mode easy forthe user to analyze. In the time series data processing apparatus, aplurality of pieces of time series data are divided into a plurality ofgroups, and an abnormality degree of each group and an abnormalitydegree of time series data within each group are calculated. Then, aresult of ranking the groups or the pieces of time series data based onthe abnormality degrees is displayed on a display.

A substrate processing apparatus such as a cleaning apparatus, which isone type of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, generallyincludes a plurality of chambers (processing chambers). When the samerecipe is executed in the plurality of chambers, uniform results arepreferably obtained in the plurality of chambers. Hence a plurality ofchambers included in one substrate processing apparatus preferably havesimilar processing performance. However, in reality, a difference inprocessing performance occurs among a plurality of chambers. For thisreason, when processing is being normally performed on a substrate in acertain chamber, similar processing may not be being normally performedin another chamber.

In view of this, also in the field of substrate processing apparatuses,analysis of time series data obtained by various processes is beingperformed in order to achieve early detection of abnormality andprevention of abnormality. Meanwhile, in order to determine whether ornot each piece of time series data included in a plurality of pieces oftime series data changing in the same manner is abnormal, each piece oftime series data to be evaluated is compared with time series datahaving ideal time-series values (data values). As time series datahaving the ideal time series values, for example, it is conceivable touse time series data made up of average values of a plurality of piecesof time series data. However, in a case where the plurality of pieces oftime series data on which an average value is calculated include a largenumber of pieces of data having abnormal values or having significantlydifferent values from the other values, a calculated average value isnot necessarily an ideal value, and an abnormality thus cannot bedetected accurately.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is therefore to provide a dataprocessing method capable of performing abnormality detection using timeseries data more accurately than before.

One aspect of the present invention is directed to a data processingmethod for processing a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data byregarding a plurality of pieces of time series data obtained byunit-processing as unit-processing data, the method including:

a reference data changing step of changing reference data which is dataselected from a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data for eachunit-element and is data to be compared with each piece ofunit-processing data; and

a reference data extending step of extending new reference data which isthe reference data after change by the reference data changing step to aunit-element other than the unit-element for which the reference datahas been changed in the reference data changing step.

With such a configuration, when there is a change in reference data(data selected from a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data foreach unit-element, and data to be compared with each piece ofunit-processing data) for a certain unit-element, new reference datawhich is reference data after change can be extended to the otherunit-element. Thus, also for a unit-element for which unit-processingdata with a favorable result has not been obtained, it is possible tohold unit-processing data with a favorable result as reference data. Inthis manner, unit-processing data obtained by processing in eachunit-element can be compared with suitable reference data, so that anabnormality of processing can be detected accurately. As describedabove, it is possible to perform the abnormality detection using timeseries data more accurately than before.

Another aspect of the present invention is directed to a data processingmethod in a data processing system including a plurality ofunit-elements, for processing a plurality of pieces of unit-processingdata by regarding a plurality of pieces of time series data obtained byunit-processing as unit-processing data, wherein

the data processing system includes

-   -   a first reference data storage part that is provided for each        unit-element and stores reference data which is data selected        from a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data for each        unit-element and is data to be compared with each piece of        unit-processing data,    -   a second reference data storage part that is shared by all        unit-elements and stores the reference data, and    -   an extension management part for managing extension of the        reference data, and

the method includes

-   -   a configuration information transmitting step of transmitting,        when a unit-element is newly added, a configuration information        for a new unit-element that is an newly added unit-element from        the new unit-element to the extension management part,    -   a reference data acquiring step of acquiring the reference data        to be extended to the new unit-element from the second reference        data storage part based on the configuration information, in the        extension management part,    -   a reference data transmitting step of transmitting the reference        data obtained in the reference data acquiring step from the        extension management part to the new unit-element, and    -   a reference data storing step of storing the reference data        transmitted in the reference data transmitting step in the first        reference data storage part, in the new unit-element.

With such a configuration, when a unit-element is added to the dataprocessing system, a configuration information for the new unit-elementis transmitted to the extension management part, and the reference databased on the configuration information is extended to the newunit-element. Accordingly, also for the new unit-element that is addedto the data processing system, it is possible to hold unit-processingdata of a favorable result as reference data. In this manner,unit-processing data obtained by processing in the new unit-element canbe compared with suitable reference data, so that an abnormality ofprocessing executed in the new unit-element can be detected accurately.As described above, it is possible to perform the abnormality detectionusing time series data more accurately than before.

Still another aspect of the present invention is directed to a dataprocessing apparatus for processing a plurality of pieces ofunit-processing data by regarding a plurality of pieces of time seriesdata obtained by unit-processing as unit-processing data, the apparatusincluding:

a reference data storage part that is provided for each unit-element andstores reference data which is data selected from a plurality of piecesof unit-processing data for each unit-element and is data to be comparedwith each piece of unit-processing data; and

a reference data extension part configured to extend reference data,which is stored in the reference data storage part for one unit-element,to the other unit-element.

Still another aspect of the present invention is directed to a dataprocessing system for processing a plurality of pieces ofunit-processing data by regarding a plurality of pieces of time seriesdata obtained by unit-processing as unit-processing data, the systemincluding:

a reference data storage part that is provided for each unit-element andstores reference data which is data selected from a plurality of piecesof unit-processing data for each unit-element and is data to be comparedwith each piece of unit-processing data; and

a reference data extension part configured to extend reference data,which is stored in the reference data storage part for one unit-element,to the other unit-element.

Still another aspect of the present invention is directed to acomputer-readable recording medium having recorded therein a dataprocessing program for processing a plurality of pieces ofunit-processing data by regarding a plurality of pieces of time seriesdata obtained by unit-processing as unit-processing data, wherein thedata processing program causes a computer to execute:

a reference data changing step of changing reference data which is dataselected from a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data for eachunit-element and is data to be compared with each piece ofunit-processing data; and

a reference data extending step of extending new reference data which isthe reference data after change by the reference data changing step to aunit-element other than the unit-element for which the reference datahas been changed in the reference data changing step.

These and other objects, features, modes, and advantages of the presentinvention will become more apparent from the following detaileddescription of the present invention with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrateprocessing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram representing a certain time series data by a graph.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining unit-processing data in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of acontroller of the substrate processing apparatus in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining time series data DB in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining first reference data DB in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining second reference data DB in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 8 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configurationrelating to reference data extension processing in the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a procedure for changing reference data ina main unit in the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a view showing an example of a scoring screen in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 11 is a view showing an example of a scoring result list screen inthe first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a view for explaining transition of the scoring result listscreen at the time of recommendation setting in the first embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a view for explaining the transition of the scoring resultlist screen at the time of recommendation setting in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 14 is a view showing an example of a ranking setting screen in thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a view showing an example of the ranking screen in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 16 is a view for explaining transition of the ranking screen at thetime when reference data is changed in the first embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a procedure of data processing concerningthe change in the reference data in the first embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a view showing an example of a change timing setting screenin the first embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining determination as to whether or not achange designation date has been reached in the first embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a diagram for explaining a change in the change designationdate associated with a setting change for change timing in the firstembodiment.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing a procedure of the reference dataextension processing in the first embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a diagram for explaining transmission of a changenotification in the first embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a diagram for explaining transmission of an updateinstruction notification in the first embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrateprocessing system according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of acontroller of a substrate processing apparatus in the second embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a diagram for explaining first reference data DB in thesecond embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of amanagement server in the second embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configurationrelating to reference data extension processing in the secondembodiment.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing a procedure of the reference dataextension processing in the second embodiment.

FIG. 30 is a diagram for explaining transmission of a changenotification in the second embodiment.

FIG. 31 is a diagram for explaining transmission of an updateinstruction notification in the second embodiment.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing a procedure of the reference dataextension processing at the time when a substrate processing apparatusis added in the second embodiment.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing a procedure of reference data extensionprocessing in a modified example.

FIG. 34 is a view showing an example of a reference data selectionscreen in the modified example.

FIG. 35 is a view showing an example of an extension destinationselection screen in the modified example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described belowwith reference to the drawings.

1. First Embodiment <1.1 Configuration of Substrate ProcessingApparatus>

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrateprocessing apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the presentinvention. The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes an indexer part10 and a processing part 20. The indexer part 10 includes a plurality ofsubstrate container holding parts 12 for placing a substrate container(cassette) capable of accommodating a plurality of substrates, and anindexer robot 14 for carrying a substrate out of the substrate containerand carrying a substrate into the substrate container. The processingpart 20 includes a plurality of processing units 22 for performingprocessing such as cleaning of substrates using a processing liquid, anda substrate transfer robot 24 for carrying a substrate into theprocessing unit 22 and carrying a substrate out of the processing unit22. The number of processing units 22 is, for example, 12. In this case,for example, a tower structure formed by laminating three processingunits 22 is provided at each of four positions around the substratetransfer robot 24 as shown in FIG. 1. Also, in the followingdescription, it is assumed that 12 processing units 22 are provided, andit is assumed that 12 processing units 22 are distinguished by names“Chamber1” to “Chamber12.” Each processing unit 22 is provided with achamber that is a space for processing the substrate, and the processingliquid is supplied to the substrate in the chamber. Further, thesubstrate processing apparatus 1 is internally provided with acontroller 100 constituted of a microcomputer.

When processing is performed on the substrate, the indexer robot 14takes the substrate to be processed out of the substrate containerplaced on the substrate container holding part 12 and transfers thesubstrate to the substrate transfer robot 24 via a substrate transferpart 8. The substrate transfer robot 24 carries the substrate receivedfrom the indexer robot 14 into the target processing unit 22. When theprocessing on the substrate is completed, the substrate transfer robot24 takes the substrate out of the target processing unit 22 andtransfers the substrate to the indexer robot 14 via the substratetransfer part 8. The indexer robot 14 carries the substrate receivedfrom the substrate transfer robot 24 to a target substrate container.

The controller 100 controls operation of an object to be controlled(such as a moving mechanism for moving the indexer robot 14) included inthe indexer part 10 and the processing part 20. In addition, thecontroller 100 accumulates and holds time series data obtained byexecuting a recipe in this substrate processing apparatus 1, andperforms various pieces of data processing using the time series data.

<1.2 Time Series Data and Reference Data>

In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the presentembodiment, time series data is acquired every time a recipe is executedin order to detect abnormality of equipment relating to processing ineach processing unit 22, abnormality of processing performed in eachprocessing unit 22, and the like. The time series data acquired in thepresent embodiment is obtained by measuring various physical quantities(e.g., a flow rate of a nozzle, an internal pressure of a chamber, anexhaust pressure of a chamber, etc.) using a sensor or the like when arecipe is executed, and arranging measurement results in chronologicalorder. In a data processing program to be described later, variousphysical quantities are processed as values of corresponding parameters,respectively. Note that one parameter corresponds to one type ofphysical quantity.

FIG. 2 is a diagram representing a certain time series data by a graph.This time series data is data on a certain physical quantity obtained byprocessing on one substrate in a chamber in one processing unit 22 whenone recipe is executed. Note that, although the time series data is datamade up of a plurality of discrete values, two temporally adjacent datavalues are connected by a straight line in FIG. 2. Meanwhile, when onerecipe is executed, time series data on various physical quantities areobtained for each processing unit 22 in which the recipe is executed.Therefore, hereinafter, processing which is performed on one substratein the chamber in one processing unit 22 when one recipe is executed isreferred to as “unit-processing”, and a group of time series dataobtained by the unit-processing is called “unit-processing data.” Asschematically shown in FIG. 3, one piece of unit-processing dataincludes time series data on a plurality of parameters and attributedata made up of data on a plurality of items (e.g., processing starttime, processing end time, etc.) for specifying the piece ofunit-processing data. As for FIG. 3, “parameter A”, “parameter B”, and“parameter C” correspond to different kinds of physical quantities.

For detecting an abnormality in equipment or processing, unit-processingdata obtained by executing a recipe should be compared withunit-processing data having an ideal data value as a processing result.More specifically, a plurality of pieces of time series data included inunit-processing data obtained by executing a recipe should be comparedwith a plurality of pieces of time series data included inunit-processing data each having an ideal data value as a processingresult. Therefore, in the present embodiment, unit-processing data forcomparison with unit-processing data to be evaluated (unit-processingdata made up of a plurality of pieces of time series data for comparisonwith a plurality of pieces of time series data included in theunit-processing data to be evaluated) is defined as reference data foreach processing unit 22 and for each recipe. That is, focusing on onerecipe, definition as the reference data corresponding to the recipe ismade for each processing unit 22.

<1.3 Configuration of Controller>

Next, the configuration of the controller 100 of the substrateprocessing apparatus 1 will be described. FIG. 4 is a block diagramshowing a hardware configuration of the controller 100. The controller100 includes a CPU 110, a main memory 120, an auxiliary storage device130, a display 140, an input part 150, and a communication controller160. The CPU 110 performs various arithmetic processing and the like inaccordance with a given command. The main memory 120 temporarily storesprograms under execution, data, and the like. The auxiliary storagedevice 130 stores various programs and various pieces of data to be heldeven when the power is turned off. In the present embodiment,specifically, a data processing program 132 for executing dataprocessing, described later, is stored in the auxiliary storage device130. Further, the auxiliary storage device 130 is provided with timeseries data DB 134, a first reference data DB 136 a, and a secondreference data DB 136 b. “DB” stands for “database.” As schematicallyshown in FIG. 5, unit-processing data for a predetermined period isstored in the time series data DB 134. As schematically shown in FIG. 6,the first reference data DB 136 a stores unit-processing data defined asreference data for each processing unit 22 and for each recipe (“recipeA”, “recipe B”, and “recipe C” represent different recipes). In thesecond reference data DB 136 b, as schematically shown in FIG. 7,unit-processing data defined as reference data is stored for eachrecipe. While the first reference data DB 136 a is provided to holdreference data to be compared with unit-processing data to be inspectedat the time of detecting an abnormality or the like of processingperformed in each processing unit 22, the second reference data DB 136 bis provided to hold reference data to be transmitted and received at thetime of performing reference data extension processing which will bedescribed later. For example, the display 140 displays various screensfor an operator to perform work. The input part 150 is, for example, amouse, a keyboard, or the like, and accepts an input from the outside bythe operator. The communication controller 160 controls datatransmission and reception.

Note that the configuration of the DB is not limited to theconfiguration described above. For example, the configuration may besuch that one DB is provided instead of the time series data DB 134, thefirst reference data DB 136 a, and the second reference data DB 136 b,so as to be distinguished from each other by table. Further, forexample, the first reference data DB 136 a may be provided for eachprocessing unit 22.

When the substrate processing apparatus 1 is activated, the dataprocessing program 132 is read into the main memory 120, and the CPU 110executes the data processing program 132 read into the main memory 120.As a result, the substrate processing apparatus 1 functions as a dataprocessing apparatus. Note that the data processing program 132 isprovided in the form of being recorded on a recording medium such as aCD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a flash memory, or the like, or in the form of beingdownloaded via a network.

<1.4 Overview of Reference Data Extension Processing (Data ProcessingConcerning Extension of Reference Data)>

In the present embodiment, the reference data extension processing thatextends reference data for a certain processing unit 22 to the otherprocessing units 22 is performed. Note that the “extension of referencedata” in the present specification means expansion of a usage range(usage target) of a target reference data. FIG. 8 is a functional blockdiagram showing a functional configuration relating to the referencedata extension processing. As shown in FIG. 8, in the substrateprocessing apparatus 1, an overall management part 170 and twelveprocessing unit management parts 180(1) to 180(12) are provided asfunctional components relating to the reference data extensionprocessing. The processing unit management parts 180(1) to 180(12)respectively correspond to Chamber1 to Chamber12 being the twelveprocessing units 22 described above. The overall management part 170includes a reference data global management part 171 and a referencedata global storage part 172. Each of the processing unit managementparts 180(1) to 180(12) includes a reference data local management part181 and a reference data local storage part 182. In the presentembodiment, an extension management part is achieved by the overallmanagement part 170, and a reference data extension part is achieved bythe reference data local management part 181 and the reference dataglobal management part 171.

In the reference data local storage part 182, reference data for thecorresponding processing unit 22 is stored. The reference data localmanagement part 181 manages the reference data for the correspondingprocessing unit 22 by using the reference data local storage part 182.Note that, although the reference data local storage part 182 is shownfor each processing unit management part 180 in FIG. 8, in the presentembodiment, all the reference data local storage parts 182 are achievedby, as the DB (database), one first reference data DB 136 a (see FIG. 4)described above.

The reference data global storage part 172 stores reference data usedfor reference data extension processing. The reference data globalmanagement part 171 manages the reference data used for the referencedata extension processing by using the reference data global storagepart 172. Note that the reference data global storage part 172 isachieved by the second reference data DB 136 b (see FIG. 4) describedabove.

In the present embodiment, one constituent as a unit-element is achievedby one processing unit 22 and one processing unit management part 180corresponding thereto. Then, for each recipe, one constituent is definedas “main” and the other constituents (eleven constituents) are definedas “subordinate.” Hereinafter, the constituent defined as “main” will bereferred to as a “main unit”, and the constituent defined as“subordinate” will be referred to as a “sub unit.” The main unitcorresponds to the main unit-element, and the sub unit corresponds tothe sub unit-element. For the sake of convenience, the processing unit22 and the processing unit management part 180 included in theconstituent defined as “main” may be referred to as a “main unit”, andthe processing unit 22 and the processing unit management part 180included in the constituent defined as “subordinate” may also bereferred to as a “sub unit” in some cases. In the reference data globalstorage part 172, in addition to the reference data, information forspecifying the main unit and sub unit is also stored for each recipe.

Concerning selection (designation) of the main unit, a screen forselecting the main unit may be displayed on the display 140 so that theoperator can select the main unit, or the main unit may be automaticallyselected based on a result obtained using a self-measuring device.Examples of using the self-measuring device may include a method ofmeasuring an etching amount (a difference between a film thicknessbefore processing and a film thickness after processing) of thesubstrate processed in each processing unit 22 with a film pressuremeter, and automatically selecting the main unit based on themeasurement result.

In the reference data extension processing, the reference data isextended from the main unit to the sub unit, but the reference data isnot extended from the sub unit to the main unit. For example, when themain unit for a certain recipe is the processing unit management part180(1), the reference data for the recipe is extended from theprocessing unit management part 180(1) to the processing unit managementparts 180(2) to 180(12).

The reference data extension processing is performed when the referencedata is changed in the main unit. In other words, the reference dataextension processing is performed with the change in the reference datain the main unit taken as a trigger. So, before describing a detailedprocedure of the reference data extension processing, a procedure forchanging the reference data in the main unit will be described.

<1.5 Change Procedure of Reference Data in Main Unit>

In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the presentembodiment, it is possible to change the reference data for each recipeas required. Hereinafter, focusing on one recipe, a description will begiven of a procedure for changing the reference data in the main unitfor the focused recipe. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the procedure forchanging the reference data in the main unit. In the followingdescription, unit-processing data to be evaluated is referred to as“evaluation target data.”

First, scoring is performed based on the evaluation target dataobtained, from the main unit, by executing a target recipe (hereinafterreferred to as a “focused recipe”) in the substrate processing apparatus1 (step S10). Note that the scoring is processing of making comparisonin time series data of each parameter between the evaluation target dataand the reference data, and digitizing the result obtained by thecomparison. If the focused recipe is executed by the eight processingunits 22 including the main unit, the scoring is performed based on eachof the eight pieces of evaluation target data obtained from the eightprocessing units 22 (i.e., the scoring is performed for eachunit-processing), so that eight scoring results are obtained. In thescoring, “non-defective” or “defective” is determined for a plurality ofevaluation items. This determination is made, for each parameter, bycomparing an inspection value, obtained based on the time series dataincluded in the evaluation target data and the time series data includedin the reference data, with a threshold corresponding to the inspectionvalue (substantially, the determination is made by comparing the timeseries data included in the evaluation target data with the time seriesdata included in the reference data). In this regard, when theinspection value exceeds the threshold, the corresponding evaluationitem is determined to be “defective.” Note that a plurality ofevaluation items may be provided for one parameter. In the presentembodiment, the scoring result of each piece of evaluation target datais represented in a mode in which the denominator is taken as the totalnumber of evaluation items and the numerator is taken as the number ofevaluation items determined as defective.

Examples of evaluation items are listed below.

Example 1

An average value of time series data in a stable period (see FIG. 2)concerning a certain parameter

Example 2

The maximum value of time series data in the stable period (see FIG. 2)concerning a certain parameter

Example 3

A length of a rising period (see FIG. 2) concerning a certain parameter

Concerning the evaluation item of Example 1, “the difference between theaverage value of the time series data included in the evaluation targetdata and the average value of the time series data included in thereference data” in the stable period concerning the target parameter isthe above inspection value. Concerning the evaluation item of Example 2,“the difference between the maximum value of the time series dataincluded in the evaluation target data and the maximum value of the timeseries data included in the reference data” in the stable periodconcerning the target parameter is the above inspection value.Concerning the evaluation item of Example 3, “the difference between thelength of the rising period for the time series data included in theevaluation target data and the length of the rising period for the timeseries data included in the reference data” is the above inspectionvalue.

Meanwhile, at the time of the scoring, each time series data may benormalized. For example, with respect to each parameter, linearconversion may be performed on the time series data included in theevaluation target data so that the maximum value of the time series dataincluded in the reference data is converted into 1 and the minimum valuethereof is converted into 0. Although the time series data on each of aplurality of parameters is generally included in the evaluation targetdata, the time series data on each of only some parameters may benormalized. By normalizing the time series data as necessary, it ispossible to more suitably calculate an evaluation value described later.

After the scoring is completed, the result of the scoring is displayed(step S20). In this regard, firstly, the scoring screen 30 showing theoutline of the scoring result, for example as shown in FIG. 10, isdisplayed on the display 140. The scoring screen 30 is provided withbuttons 32 in number equal to the number of processing units 22. In thebutton 32, a processing unit name display area 321, a processed numberdisplay area 322, and an error number display area 323 are provided. Inthe processing unit name display area 321, the name of the correspondingprocessing unit 22 is displayed. In the processed number display area322, the total number of substrates processed within a predeterminedperiod in the chamber in the corresponding processing unit 22 isdisplayed. In the error number display area 323, the number of generatederror cases is displayed. For the processing unit 22 in which an errorhas occurred, a circle having a size corresponding to the number oferror cases is displayed in the error number display area 323 as denotedby reference numeral 34.

When any one of the buttons 32 on the scoring screen as described aboveis pressed, a screen showing the scoring result of the unit-processingexecuted by the corresponding processing unit 22 is displayed. At thetime of changing the reference data in the main unit, the button 32corresponding to the main unit on the scoring screen 30 is pressed. Whenone unit-processing is selected on the screen displayed after thepressing of the button 32, a scoring result list screen 40, whichdisplays a lift of scoring results for the recipe corresponding to theselected unit-processing, for example as shown in FIG. 11, is displayedon the display 140.

As shown in FIG. 11, the scoring result list screen 40 includes a buttondisplay area 41, a search target display area 42, an item name displayarea 43, a result display area 44, and a period display area 45. In thebutton display area 41, a Good button 411, a Bad button 412, a Rankingbutton 413, and a Swap button 414 are provided.

In the search target display area 42, the name of the processing unit 22to be searched (in this case, the main unit) and the name of the recipeto be searched (in this case, the focused recipe) are displayed. In theexample shown in FIG. 11, it is grasped that the name of the processingunit 22 to be searched is “Chamber3” and the name of the recipe to besearched is “Flushing test2.”

In the item name display area 43, the item name of the content(attribute data) to be displayed in the result display area 44 isdisplayed. “Failed/Total” is an item name representing the scoringresult. Note that “Failed” corresponds to the number of evaluation itemsdetermined to be defective, and “Total” corresponds to the total numberof evaluation items. “Start time” is an item name representing the starttime of the focused recipe. “End time” is an item name representing theend time of the focused recipe. “Process time” is an item namerepresenting the processing time of the focused recipe. “Alarm” is anitem name representing the number of alarms generated at the time ofexecuting the focused recipe. “Substrate ID” is an item namerepresenting a number for uniquely identifying a substrate (wafer) onwhich processing based on the focused recipe has been performed.“Recommend (Good/Bad)” is an item name representing the recommendationdegree described later. Note that “Good” corresponds to a valuerepresenting the degree of high evaluation (hereinafter referred to as“Good value”), and “Bad” corresponds to a value representing the degreeof low evaluation (hereinafter referred to as “Bad value”). Therecommendation degree is made up of these Good value and Bad value.

In the result display area 44, attribute data (various pieces ofinformation, scoring results, etc.) of the unit-processing data matchinga search condition is displayed. In the example shown in FIG. 11,attribute data of each of eight pieces of unit-processing data isdisplayed in the result display area 44. The operator can select onepiece of attribute data (one row) from the pieces of attribute datadisplayed in the result display area 44.

In the period display area 45, a preset search target period isdisplayed. The attribute data of the unit-processing data obtained byexecuting the focused recipe in this search target period is displayedin the result display area 44. In the example shown in FIG. 11, it isgrasped that the search target period is one month from 7:39:34 pm onJul. 19, 2017 to 7:39:34 pm on Aug. 19, 2017.

A function of each button provided in the button display area 41 will bedescribed here. The Good button 411 is a button for the operator topress when it is desired to raise the evaluation value of theunit-processing data corresponding to the attribute data selected in theresult display area 44. The Bad button 412 is a button for the operatorto press when it is desired to lower the evaluation value of theunit-processing data corresponding to the attribute data selected in theresult display area 44. The Ranking button 413 is a button forinstructing execution of ranking processing. The Swap button 414 is abutton for defining the unit-processing data corresponding to theattribute data selected in the result display area 44 as new referencedata. Note that the evaluation value and the ranking processing will bedescribed later.

After displaying the scoring result list screen 40, setting(recommendation setting) of the recommendation degree representing thedegree of recommending each piece of unit-processing data as referencedata is performed as necessary (step S30). The recommendation setting isperformed by pressing the Good button 411 or the Bad button 412 in astate where the attribute data corresponding to the unit-processing datato be set among the attribute data displayed in the result display area44 is selected. At that time, the operator presses the Good button 411when the unit-processing data to be set is preferable as the referencedata, and the operator presses the Bad button 412 when theunit-processing data to be set is not preferable as the reference data.In this regard, immediately after the displaying of the scoring resultlist screen 40, the Good button 411 and the Bad button 412 are in anun-selectable state. When the operator selects any of the attribute datadisplayed in the result display area 44 in this state, the correspondingattribute data comes into a selected state and the Good button 411 andthe Bad button 412 come into the selectable state as shown in FIG. 12.The operator presses the Good button 411 or the Bad button 412 in thisstate to add the Good value and the Bad value. For example, when the Badbutton 412 is pressed three times from the state shown in FIG. 12, theBad value of the selected attribute data is “3” as shown in FIG. 13. Asdescribed above, the scoring result list screen 40 is configured suchthat the recommendation degree can be changed from the outside. Notethat specifically what value is to be set for the Good value or the Badvalue is determined considering, for example, the scoring result, thenumber of alarms, the state of the resultant object (substrate) obtainedin the corresponding unit-processing (e.g., the number of particles, thenumber of defects, a collapse rate), and the like. In addition to theGood button 411 and the Bad button 412, a button for reducing the Goodvalue and a button for reducing the Bad value may be provided.

Meanwhile, each recipe is normally executed a plurality of times fromthe change in the reference data at a certain point of time until thenext change in the reference data. That is, the scoring is usuallyexecuted a plurality of times from the change in the reference data at acertain point of time until the next change in the reference data.Therefore, with respect to a series of processing (a series ofprocessing shown in FIG. 9) for changing the reference data once, theprocessing of step S10 to step S30 is usually repeated a plurality oftimes. When it is desired to change the reference data, the operatorpresses the Ranking button 413 in the scoring result list screen 40(step S40). As a result, a ranking setting screen 50, for example asshown in FIG. 14, is displayed on the display 140. The ranking settingscreen 50 is a screen for setting regarding ranking processing describedlater.

The ranking processing will be described here. The ranking processing inthe present embodiment is a series of processing to perform, based onthree indices, ranking on a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data(unit-processing data in a search target period) obtained by executing adesignated recipe, and displaying the result of the ranking in a rankingformat. Note that the ranking format refers to a format in which data isranked in order from data ranked high to data ranked low. The rank ofeach piece of unit-processing data is determined by an evaluation value(total score) calculated based on the three indices. In the presentembodiment, as the three index values for calculating the evaluationvalue, there are used a value based on the above-mentionedrecommendation degree (hereinafter referred to as “recommended value”),a value based on the scoring result (hereinafter referred to as “scoringresult value”), and a value based on the number of occurrence of alarms(or presence or absence of an alarm) (hereinafter referred to as “alarmvalue”). A specific way to obtain the evaluation value will be describedlater. In the ranking processing, a plurality of pieces ofunit-processing data within the search target period are ranked based onthe evaluation value, and attribute data corresponding to each piece ofunit-processing data is displayed in the ranking format.

In step S50, a setting necessary for executing the ranking processing asdescribed above is performed by the operator's operation using theranking setting screen 50. FIG. 14 is a view showing an example of theranking setting screen 50. As shown in FIG. 14, this ranking settingscreen 50 includes an OK button 58, a cancel button 59, and threedrop-down lists 51 to 53 for setting the influence degree (degree ofcontribution) of each of the above three index values at the time ofcalculating the evaluation value for determining the rank of each pieceof unit-processing data. The drop-down list 51 is an interface forsetting the influence degree of the recommended value. The drop-downlist 52 is an interface for setting the influence degree of the scoringresult value. The drop-down list 53 is an interface for setting theinfluence degree of the alarm value. The OK button 58 is a button forexecuting the ranking processing (the processing of steps S60 to S110)based on the setting contents. The Cancel button 59 is a button forcanceling the setting contents (the contents having been set using thedrop-down lists 51 to 53) and returning to the scoring result listscreen 40.

For the drop-down lists 51 to 53, it is possible to set the influencedegree at a step of 1%, for example. However, it is also possible to setthe influence degree at a step of 5% or 10%. For the one that is not tobe used as an index value at the time of calculating the evaluationvalue, it is possible to set the influence degree to 0%.

Meanwhile, when the setting value in the drop-down list 51 is defined asa “first setting value”, the setting value in the drop-down list 52 isdefined as a “second setting value”, and the setting value in thedrop-down list 53 is defined as a “third setting value”, it ispreferable to automatically adjust the values such that the sum of thefirst setting value, the second setting value, and the third settingvalue becomes 100%. In this regard, the configuration may be such that,when values are set for two drop-down lists after the displaying of theranking setting screen 50, the value of the remaining drop-down list isset automatically. In this case, for example, when the setting of “firstset value=50, second set value=30” is made, the third set value isautomatically set to “20.” Alternatively, the configuration may be suchthat, when the value for any one drop-down list is changed in a statewhere values for the three drop-down lists have already been set, thevalues for the remaining two drop-down lists are automatically changedwhile maintain the ratio thereof. In this case, for example, when thefirst setting value is changed to “55” in a state where “first settingvalue=70, second setting value=20, and third setting value=10” has beenset, the second setting value is automatically changed to “30”, and thethird setting value is automatically changed to “15.”

Note that, the configuration may be such that, such setting that the sumof the first set value, the second set value and the third set valueexceeds 100% is accepted and internal processing is performed so as tomake the sum be 100% while maintaining the ratio. Further, theconfiguration may be such that, when such setting that the sum of thefirst set value, the second set value and the third set value exceeds100% is performed, a message indicating “the sum exceeds 100%” isdisplayed to prompt resetting.

After the influence degrees of the three index values have been set,when the OK button 58 on the ranking setting screen 50 is pressed, theranking processing (processing of steps S60 to S110) is started. In theranking processing, all pieces of unit-processing data, obtained fromeach processing unit 22 by the focused recipe being executed in thesearch target period, become evaluation target data.

First, the above recommended value is obtained for each piece ofevaluation target data which can be candidates for reference data (stepS60). When the Good value is represented as CntG and the Bad value isrepresented as CntB, a recommended value V(R) is calculated by thefollowing Formula (1), for example.

V(R)=(CntG−CntB)×100/(CntG+CntB)  (1)

Here, when “CntG=0” and “CntB=0”, “V(R)=0” is set.

Next, the above alarm value is obtained for each piece of evaluationtarget data (step S70). For the alarm value V(A), for example,“V(A)=100” is set when the number of alarms is 0 (indicated as “None” onthe scoring result list screen 40), and “V(A)=−100” is set when thenumber of alarms is 1 or more.

Next, the above scoring result value V(S) is obtained for each piece ofevaluation target data (step S80). When the total number of evaluationitems is represented as Nt and the number of evaluation items determinedas defective is represented as Nf, the scoring result value V(S) iscalculated by the following Formula (2), for example.

V(S)(Nt−2×Nf)×100/Nt  (2)

After the recommended value V(R), the alarm value V(A), and the scoringresult value V(S) have been obtained as described above, the aboveevaluation value (total score) is calculated for each piece ofevaluation target data (step S90). When the values (proportions) of thedrop-down lists 51 to 53 set in step S50 are respectively represented asP1 to P3, the evaluation value (total score) Vtotal is calculated by thefollowing Formula (3).

Vtotal=V(R)×P1+V(S)×P2+V(A)×P3  (3)

After the calculation of the evaluation values for all pieces ofunit-processing data (evaluation target data) that can be candidates forthe reference data, ranking on the unit-processing data is performedbased on the calculated evaluation value (step S100). At that time,unit-processing data with a larger evaluation value is ranked higher (anumerical value representing the rank becomes smaller). Therefore, theunit-processing data ranked as the first is the unit-processing datahaving the largest evaluation value.

After completion of the ranking, a ranking screen 60 representing theresult of the ranking, for example as shown in FIG. 15, is displayed onthe display 140 (step S110). As shown in FIG. 15, attribute data for aplurality of pieces of unit-processing data is displayed on the rankingscreen in the ranking format in accordance with the ranking results.

The ranking screen 60 includes a button display area 61, a search targetdisplay area 62, an item name display area 63, a result display area 64,and a period display area 65. Like the scoring result list screen 40, aGood button 411, a Bad button 412, a Ranking button 413, and a Swapbutton 414 are provided in the button display area 61.

In the search target display area 62, the name of the processing unit 22to be searched and the name of the recipe to be searched (in this case,the focused recipe) are displayed. In the example shown in FIG. 15, itis grasped that the names of the processing units 22 to be searched are“Chamber3”, “Chamber4”, and “Chamber5” and the name of the recipe to besearched is “Flushing test2.” While only the processing unit 22 selectedon the scoring screen 30 (see FIG. 10) has been the search target on thescoring result list screen 40 (see FIG. 11), all the processing units 22for which the focused recipe is executed in the search target period aresearch targets on the ranking screen 60. However, the configuration maybe such that only the processing unit (here, the main unit) selected onthe scoring screen 30 is set as a search target also on the rankingscreen 60.

In the item name display area 63, the item name of the content(attribute data) to be displayed in the result display area 64 isdisplayed. “Ranking” is an item name representing a rank based on theranking. “Total Score” is an item name representing the evaluation value(total score). “Recommend Score” is an item name representing a value(V(R)×P1) obtained by multiplying the recommended value by the ratio setin the drop-down list 51 of the ranking setting screen 50. “ScoringResult Score” is an item name representing a value (V(S)×P2) obtained bymultiplying the scoring result value by the ratio set in the drop-downlist 52 of the ranking setting screen 50. “Alarm Number Score” is anitem name representing a value (V(A)×P3) obtained by multiplying thealarm value by the ratio set in the drop-down list 53 of the rankingsetting screen 50. “Unit” is an item name representing the processingunit. “Start time” is an item name representing the start time of thefocused recipe. “End time” is an item name representing the end time ofthe focused recipe. “Process time” is an item name representing theprocessing time of the focused recipe.

In the result display area 64, attribute data (various pieces ofinformation, ranks based on ranking, etc.) of the unit-processing datamatching a search condition is displayed. As can be grasped from FIG.15, in the result display area 64, the attribute data of theunit-processing data is displayed in a state sorted from one having ahigh evaluation value to one having a low evaluation value. Therefore,the unit-processing data corresponding to attribute data displayed onthe first row of the result display area 64 is the unit-processing datahaving the largest evaluation value among the unit-processing datamatching the search condition. The operator can select one piece ofattribute data (one row) from the pieces of attribute data displayed inthe result display area 64.

As in the period display area 45 of the scoring result list screen 40,the search target period is displayed in the period display area 65. Inthe example shown in FIG. 15, it is grasped that the search targetperiod is one month from 7:39:34 pm on Jul. 19, 2017 to 7:39:34 pm onAug. 19, 2017.

After displaying of the ranking screen 60, the reference data afterchange is selected by the operator (step S120). Specifically, theoperator selects attribute data corresponding to unit-processing data tobe set as the reference data after change from the attribute datadisplayed in the result display area 64 on the ranking screen 60. Thisbrings the selected attribute data into the selected state on theranking screen 60. In this state, the operator presses the Swap button414 in the button display area 61. As a result, the reference data forthe focused recipe concerning the main unit is changed (step S130).Specifically, the unit-processing data corresponding to the focusedrecipe among the unit-processing data for the main unit held in thefirst reference data DB 136 a (see FIG. 6) is rewritten tounit-processing data corresponding to the attribute data in the selectedstate in the result display area 64. Since the reference data can bedetermined based on the ranking result as described above, it ispossible to define the unit-processing data having an ideal time seriesvalue as the reference data after change.

For example, when the operator selects the attribute data on the firstrow in the result display area 64 while the ranking screen 60 is in thestate shown in FIG. 15, the attribute data on the first row comes intothe selected state and the Swap button 414 comes into a pressable stateas shown in FIG. 16. When the operator presses the Swap button 414 inthis state, the reference data for the focused recipe is changed to theunit-processing data corresponding to the attribute data on the firstrow.

Note that, according to the present embodiment, it is also possible toselect unit-processing data with a rank other than the first rank basedon the ranking as the reference data. In this manner, it is possible toselect the reference data matching the needs of the user.

By changing the reference data as described above, the series ofprocessing shown in FIG. 9 is completed. In the present embodiment, aunit-processing data evaluating step is achieved by the above steps S10to S90. Note that the configuration may be such that only the data forthe main unit is displayed in the result display area 64 on the rankingscreen 60 when the reference data for the main unit is changed.

Meanwhile, with respect to each recipe, the reference data for the mainunit may be changed at previously designated timing. The procedure forchanging the reference data in the main unit in this case will bedescribed with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. 17. Note that aseries of processing shown in FIG. 17 is performed by the controller 100of the substrate processing apparatus 1.

First, the change timing of the reference data is set by the operator'soperation (step S200). At that time, a change timing setting screen 70,for example as shown in FIG. 18, is displayed on the display 140. Thechange timing setting screen 70 includes a setting area 700, an OKbutton 78, and a Cancel button 79. The OK button 78 is a button forconfirming the setting contents. The Cancel button 79 is a button forcanceling the setting contents.

In the setting area 700 on the change timing setting screen 70, it ispossible to set the change timing of the reference data for the mainunit for each recipe. The change timing is set by designating elapsedtime, which is a length of a period from a change in the reference dataat a certain point in time to the next change in the reference data,(i.e., a time interval for changing the reference data) for each recipe.

As shown in FIG. 18, in the setting area 700, a spin control box 71 anda drop-down list 72 are provided for each recipe. The spin control box71 is an interface for designating the length of the period to be set.The spin control box 71 is configured so as to be able to increase ordecrease the numerical value representing the length of the period. Thedrop-down list 72 is an interface for designating a unit of a period tobe set. The unit that can be designated in this drop-down list 72 is anyof “year”, “month”, and “day.” The operator operates the spin controlbox 71 and the drop-down list 72 to set the change timing of thereference data for each recipe. In the example shown in FIG. 18, thereference data for the main unit concerning the recipe named “recipe A”is changed every year, and the reference data for the main unitconcerning the recipe named “recipe B” is changed every three months.

With respect to the flow shown in FIG. 17, after the change timing ofthe reference data is set using the change timing setting screen 70 asdescribed above, the controller 100 counts up the operation period (stepS210). Specifically, a variable (hereinafter referred to as “operationperiod variable”) CntD for counting the operation period is prepared inthe data processing program 132, and the value of the operation periodvariable CntD is incremented by one every time one day passes.

When the value of the operation period variable CntD is incremented byone, for each recipe, it is determined whether or not the date on whichthe reference data is to be changed (hereinafter referred to as “changedesignation date”) has been reached, based on setting contents on thechange timing setting screen 70 (step S220). As a result of thedetermination, when there is a recipe whose change designation date hasbeen reached, the processing proceeds to step S230. On the other hand,when there is no recipe whose change designation date has been reached,the processing returns to step S210.

With reference to FIG. 19, an example of a specific method fordetermining whether or not the change designation date has been reachedwill be described here. However, the present invention is not limitedthereto. It is assumed that count of the operation period variable CntDis performed using the date on which the change timing is first set as areference date. Further, it is assumed that the elapsed time concerninga certain recipe has been set to “two months” on the change timingsetting screen 70. At this time, for example, in a case in which thereference date is May 3 of a certain year, as shown in FIG. 19, thechange designation date for the target recipe is the date every twomonths from May 3 (i.e. July 3, September 3, November 3, . . . ). Fromthe information of the change designation date and the information ofthe reference date, the number of days elapsed from the reference datecan be obtained for each change designation date. For example, as forSeptember 3 of the same year as the reference date, the number of dayssince the reference date is 123. Since the number of days elapsed fromthe reference date to each change designation date can be obtained asthus described, it is possible to determine whether or not the changedesignation date has been reached by comparing the number of dayselapsed with the value of the operation period variable CntD. Forexample, on July 3, the value of the operation period variable CntDbecomes “61”, and therefore it can be determined that the changedesignation date has been reached for the corresponding setting target.

Meanwhile, after the change timing has been first set, the settingchange of the change timing may be made for each recipe. How the changedesignation date changes in accordance with the setting change of thechange timing in such a case will be described with reference to FIG.20. It is assumed here that the change timing (elapsed time) for acertain recipe has been changed from “8 days” to “6 days.” Further, itis assumed that the setting change was made after the lapse of 12 daysfrom the reference date. In this case, at the point in time when thechange timing is first set, the change designation date for the targetrecipe becomes the date every eight days from the reference date (thenumber of days elapsed from the reference date is 8, 16, 24, . . . ). Inthis state, as described above, the setting change is made after thelapse of 12 days from the reference date. At this time, since the latestchange in the reference data was made 8 days after the reference date,for example, as denoted by reference numeral 76 in FIG. 20, the dateevery six days from the day after the eight days from the reference date(the number of days elapsed from the reference date is 14, 20, 26, . . .) can be defined as the change designation date. Further, for example,as denoted by reference numeral 77 in FIG. 20, the date every six daysfrom the date on which setting change is made (the number of dayselapsed from the reference date is 18, 24, 30, . . . ) can also bedefined as the change designation date. In this manner, the processingin the case where the setting change of the change timing is made is notparticularly limited, and the change designation date may be changed inaccordance with an appropriately defined rule.

With respect to the flow shown in FIG. 17, in step S230, the rankingprocessing described above is performed in order to determine theunit-processing data to be the reference data after change (step S230).Thereafter, based on the result of the ranking processing, the referencedata for the main unit concerning the recipe whose change designationdate has been reached is changed (step S240). Specifically, theunit-processing data corresponding to the target recipe among theunit-processing data for the main unit held in the first reference dataDB 136 a (see FIG. 6) is rewritten to the unit-processing data ranked asthe first in the ranking processing in step S230.

As described above, the configuration may be such that the change timingof the reference data for the main unit can be set for each recipe andthe reference data for the main unit concerning the recipe whose changetiming has been reached is automatically rewritten to theunit-processing data ranked as the first in the ranking processing.

<1.6 Procedure of Reference Data Extension Processing>

Next, based on the contents described above, the procedure of thereference data extension processing will be described. FIG. 21 is aflowchart showing the procedure of the reference data extensionprocessing in the present embodiment. A series of processing shown inFIG. 21 is achieved by the CPU 110 in the controller 100 executing thedata processing program 132 in the substrate processing apparatus 1.

First, in the main unit, a change in the reference data (an update ofthe reference data stored in the reference data local storage part 182)is made (step S300). With the change in the reference data in step S300taken as a trigger, the reference data local management part 181 of themain unit transmits a change notification indicating the change in thereference data together with the reference data after change(hereinafter referred to as “new reference data”) to the reference dataglobal management part 171 in the overall management part 170 (stepS310). In this manner, in step S310, as indicated by an arrow markedwith reference numeral in FIG. 22, the change notification istransmitted together with new reference data from the main unit to theoverall management part 170.

Next, the reference data global management part 171 in the overallmanagement part 170 specifies the processing unit 22 whose referencedata has been changed (i.e., main unit) and a recipe whose referencedata has been changed, based on the change notification and the newreference data transmitted in step S310 (step S320). Then, the referencedata global management part 171 specifies the processing unit 22 to bean extension destination of the new reference data (i.e., sub unit) byreferring to the reference data global storage part 172. Further, thereference data global management part 171 changes (updates) thereference data for the target recipe among the reference data stored inthe reference data global storage part 172 to the new reference data.

Next, the reference data global management part 171 in the overallmanagement part 170 transmits an update instruction notificationtogether with the new reference data to the sub unit specified in stepS320 (i.e., the processing unit 22 being the extension destination ofthe new reference data) (step S330). As described above, in step S330,as indicated by an arrow marked with reference numeral 92 in FIG. 23,the update instruction notification is transmitted together with the newreference data from the overall management part 170 to the sub unit.

Thereafter, in each sub unit, the reference data local management part181 changes (updates) the reference data for the target recipe among thereference data stored in the reference data local storage part 182 tothe new reference data based on the update instruction notification(step S340). This completes the reference data extension processing.

Note that, in the present embodiment, a reference data changing step isachieved by step S300, and a reference data extending step is achievedby steps S310 to S340. Further, a reference data uploading step isachieved by step S310, an extension destination specifying step isachieved by step S320, a reference data downloading step is achieved bystep S330, and a reference data updating step is achieved by step S340.

<1.7 Effects>

According to the present embodiment, in the substrate processingapparatus 1 in which the reference data (data selected from a pluralityof pieces of unit-processing data each including a plurality of piecesof time series data, and data to be compared with each piece ofunit-processing data) is defined for each processing unit 22 for eachrecipe, when the reference data for a certain recipe is changed in theprocessing unit 22 defined as a main unit concerning the target recipe,the reference data after change is extended to the processing unit 22defined as a sub unit concerning the target recipe. As a result, forexample, also for the processing unit 22 for which a favorable resultconcerning a certain recipe has not been obtained, it is possible tohold unit-processing data of a favorable result concerning the targetrecipe as reference data. In this manner, unit-processing data obtainedby processing in each processing unit 22 can be compared with suitablereference data, so that an abnormality of processing executed in thesubstrate processing apparatus 1 can be detected accurately. Asdescribed above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible toperform the abnormality detection using time series data more accuratelythan before.

2. Second Embodiment

In the first embodiment, the extension of the reference data from themain unit to the sub unit is performed in one substrate processingapparatus 1. In contrast, in the present embodiment, reference data isextended between a plurality of substrate processing apparatuses 1.Hereinafter, differences from the first embodiment will be mainlydescribed, and description of similarities to the first embodiment willbe omitted as appropriate.

<2.1 Schematic Configuration of System>

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a substrateprocessing system (data processing system) according to a secondembodiment of the present invention. This substrate processing system ismade up of a plurality of (n) substrate processing apparatuses 1(1) to1(n) and a management server 2 for managing the plurality of substrateprocessing apparatuses 1(1) to 1(n). The plurality of substrateprocessing apparatuses 1 and the management server 2 are connected toeach other via a network (communication line) 3 such as a LAN. Aschematic configuration of each substrate processing apparatus 1 is thesame as that of the first embodiment (see FIG. 1).

<2.2 Configuration of Controller of Substrate Processing Apparatus>

Next, the configuration of the controller 100 of the substrateprocessing apparatus 1 will be described. FIG. 25 is a block diagramshowing a hardware configuration of the controller 100 of the substrateprocessing apparatus 1. Although the first reference data DB 136 a andthe second reference data DB 136 b are provided as the DB for storingthe reference data in the first embodiment, only the first referencedata DB 136 is provided in the present embodiment. In the firstreference data DB 136, as schematically shown in FIG. 26,unit-processing data defined as the reference data is stored for eachrecipe. In this manner, in the present embodiment, in each substrateprocessing apparatus 1, the reference data is determined for each recipeirrespective of the number of processing units 22 (the number ofchambers).

When the substrate processing apparatus 1 is activated, the dataprocessing program 132 is read into the main memory 120, and the CPU 110executes the data processing program 132 read into the main memory 120.Note that the data processing program 132 is provided in the form ofbeing recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, or aflash memory, or in the form of being downloaded via the network.

<2.3 Configuration of Management Server>

Next, the configuration of the management server 2 will be described.FIG. 27 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of themanagement server 2. The management server 2 includes a CPU 210, a mainmemory 220, an auxiliary storage device 230, a display 240, an inputpart 250, and a communication controller 260. The CPU 210, the mainmemory 220, the auxiliary storage device 230, the display 240, the inputpart 250, and the communication controller 260 respectively have thesame functions as the CPU 110, the main memory 120, the auxiliarystorage device 130, the display 140, the input part 150, and thecommunication controller 160 in the controller 100 of the substrateprocessing apparatus 1. However, in the auxiliary storage device 230, adata processing program 232 that is different from the data processingprogram 132 stored in the auxiliary storage device 130 is stored. Inaddition, second reference data DB 234 is provided in the auxiliarystorage device 230. As described above, in the auxiliary storage device230 of the management server 2, the time series data DB is not provided,and only the second reference data DB 234 for holding the reference datanecessary for the reference data extension processing is provided.

When the management server 2 is activated, the data processing program232 is read into the main memory 220, and the CPU 210 executes the dataprocessing program 232 read into the main memory 220. Note that the dataprocessing program 232 is provided in the form of being recorded on arecording medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a flash memory, or thelike, or in the form of being downloaded via the network. A program inwhich the data processing program 132 for the substrate processingapparatus 1 and the data processing program 232 for the managementserver 2 are integrated may be provided, in the form of being recordedon a recording medium or in the form of being downloaded via thenetwork, to the substrate processing apparatus 1 and the managementserver 2.

<2.4 Reference Data Extension Processing (Data Processing ConcerningExtension of Reference Data)>

In the reference data extension processing in the present embodiment,the reference data for a certain substrate processing apparatus 1 isextended to the other substrate processing apparatuses 1. FIG. 28 is afunctional block diagram showing a functional configuration relating tothe reference data extension processing. Each substrate processingapparatus 1 is provided with a reference data local management part 191and a reference data local storage part 192 as functional componentsrelating to the reference data extension processing. In the managementserver 2, a reference data global management part 271 and a referencedata global storage part 272 are provided as functional componentsrelating to the reference data extension processing. Note that, in thepresent embodiment, an extension management part is achieved by themanagement server 2, and a reference data extension part is achieved bythe reference data local management part 191 and the reference dataglobal management part 271.

In the reference data local storage part 192, reference data for thecorresponding substrate processing apparatus 1 is stored. The referencedata local management part 191 uses the reference data local storagepart 192 to manage the reference data for the corresponding substrateprocessing apparatus 1. The reference data global storage part 272stores reference data used for reference data extension processing. Thereference data global management part 271 uses the reference data globalstorage part 272 to manage the reference data used for the referencedata extension processing. The reference data local storage part 192 isachieved by the first reference data DB 136 (see FIG. 25), and thereference data global storage part 272 is achieved by the secondreference data DB 234 (see FIG. 27).

In the present embodiment, for each recipe, one substrate processingapparatus 1 is defined as “main” and the other substrate processingapparatuses 1 are defined as “sub.” That is, in the present embodiment,each substrate processing apparatus 1 corresponds to a unit-element.Hereinafter, the substrate processing apparatus 1 defined as “main” willbe referred to as a “main apparatus”, and the substrate processingapparatus 1 defined as “subordinate” will be referred to as a “subapparatus.” The main apparatus corresponds to the main unit-element, andthe sub apparatus corresponds to the sub unit-element. In the referencedata extension processing, the reference data is extended from the mainapparatus to the sub apparatus, but the reference data is not extendedfrom the sub apparatus to the main apparatus. For example, when the mainapparatus for a certain recipe is the substrate processing apparatus1(1), the reference data for the recipe is extended from the substrateprocessing apparatus 1(1) to the substrate processing apparatuses 1(2)to 1(n).

The reference data extension processing is performed when the referencedata is changed in the main apparatus. In other words, the referencedata extension processing is performed with the change in the referencedata in the main apparatus taken as a trigger. How the reference data ischanged is similar to that in the first embodiment, and hence thedescription thereof will be omitted.

Next, based on the contents described above, the procedure of thereference data extension processing will be described. FIG. 29 is aflowchart showing the procedure of the reference data extensionprocessing in the present embodiment. A series of processing shown inFIG. 29 is achieved by the CPU 110 in the controller 100 executing thedata processing program 132 in the substrate processing apparatus 1 andby the CPU 210 in the management server 2 executing the data processingprogram 232.

First, in the main apparatus, a change in the reference data (an updateof the reference data stored in the reference data local storage part192) is made (step S400). With the change in the reference data in stepS400 taken as a trigger, the reference data local management part 191 ofthe main apparatus transmits a change notification indicating the changein the reference data together with the reference data after change (newreference data) to the reference data global management part 271 in themanagement server 2 (step S410). In this manner, in step S410, asindicated by an arrow marked with reference numeral 93 in FIG. 30, thechange notification is transmitted together with the new reference datafrom the main apparatus to the management server 2.

Next, the reference data global management part 271 in the managementserver 2 specifies the substrate processing apparatus 1 whose referencedata has been changed (i.e., main apparatus) and a recipe whosereference data has been changed, based on the change notification andthe new reference data transmitted in step S410 (step S420). Then, thereference data global management part 271 specifies the substrateprocessing apparatus 1 to be the extension destination of the newreference data (i.e., sub apparatus) by referring to the reference dataglobal storage part 272. Further, the reference data global managementpart 271 changes (updates) the reference data for the target recipeamong the reference data stored in the reference data global storagepart 272 to the new reference data.

Next, the reference data global management part 271 in the managementserver 2 transmits an update instruction notification together with thenew reference data to the sub apparatus specified in step S420 (i.e.,the substrate processing apparatus 1 being the extension destination ofthe new reference data) (step S430). In this manner, in step S430, asindicated by an arrow marked with reference numeral 94 in FIG. 31, theupdate instruction notification is transmitted together with the newreference data from the management server 2 to the sub apparatus.

Thereafter, in each sub apparatus, the reference data local managementpart 191 changes (updates) the reference data for the target recipeamong the reference data stored in the reference data local storage part192 to the new reference data, based on the update instructionnotification (step S440). This completes the reference data extensionprocessing.

Note that, in the present embodiment, a reference data changing step isachieved by step S400, and a reference data extending step is achievedby steps S410 to S440. Further, a reference data uploading step isachieved by step S410, an extension destination specifying step isachieved by step S420, a reference data downloading step is achieved bystep S430, and a reference data updating step is achieved by step S440.

Meanwhile, in the present embodiment, the reference data extensionprocessing is performed also when a new substrate processing apparatus 1is added to the substrate processing system. At this time, the addedsubstrate processing apparatus 1 is defined as a sub apparatusconcerning all the recipes, and for each recipe, the reference data isextended from the substrate processing apparatus 1 (main apparatus)defined as main to the added substrate processing apparatus 1. Theprocedure of the reference data extension processing at the time ofaddition of the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described belowwith reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 32. This processing isalso achieved by the CPU 110 in the controller 100 executing the dataprocessing program 132 in the substrate processing apparatus 1 and bythe CPU 210 in the management server 2 executing the data processingprogram 232.

First, the substrate processing apparatus 1 is added to the substrateprocessing system (step S500). More specifically, one substrateprocessing apparatus (hereinafter referred to as “newly addedapparatus”) is additionally connected to the network 3 constituting thesubstrate processing system, and the power of the newly added apparatusis turned on. The newly added apparatus transmits apparatusconfiguration information (e.g., information such as a type of achamber, a type of a chemical liquid to be used, a type of a nozzle thatdischarges a chemical liquid, etc.) for specifying the type of theapparatus to the reference data global management part 271 in themanagement server 2 (step S510). By transmitting the apparatusconfiguration information to the reference data global management part271 in this manner, even when a plurality of types of substrateprocessing apparatuses 1 are mixed in the substrate processing system,appropriate reference data corresponding to the type of the newly addedapparatus is extended to the newly added apparatus.

Next, the reference data global management part 271 acquires the latestreference data for each recipe from the reference data global storagepart 272 based on the apparatus configuration information transmitted instep S510 (step S520). Then, the reference data global management part271 transmits the reference data acquired in step S520 to the referencedata local management part 191 of the newly added apparatus (step S530).

Thereafter, in the newly added apparatus, the reference data localmanagement part 191 stores the reference data for each recipetransmitted in step S530 in the reference data local storage part 192(step S540). This completes the reference data extension processing.

As described above, when the substrate processing apparatus 1 is addedto this substrate processing system, as data to be compared (fordetecting an abnormality of processing, etc.) with unit-processing dataobtained by future processing in the newly added apparatus, thereference data already held in the substrate processing system isextended to the newly added apparatus.

Note that, in the present embodiment, a configuration informationtransmitting step is achieved by step S510, a reference data acquiringstep is achieved by step S520, a reference data transmitting step isachieved by step S530, and a reference data storing step is achieved bystep S540. In addition, a first reference data storage part is achievedby the reference data local storage part 192, and a second referencedata storage part is achieved by the reference data global storage part272.

<2.5 Effects>

According to the present embodiment, in the substrate processing systemin which the reference data is defined for each substrate processingapparatus 1 for each recipe, when the reference data for a certainrecipe is changed in the substrate processing apparatus 1 defined as themain apparatus concerning the target recipe, the reference data afterchange is extended to the substrate processing apparatus 1 defined asthe sub apparatus concerning the target recipe. As a result, forexample, also for the substrate processing apparatus 1 for which afavorable result concerning a certain recipe has not been obtained, itis possible to hold unit-processing data of a favorable resultconcerning the target recipe as reference data. In this manner,unit-processing data obtained by processing in each substrate processingapparatus 1 can be compared with suitable reference data, so that anabnormality of processing executed in each substrate processingapparatus 1 can be detected accurately. Further, when the substrateprocessing apparatus 1 is added to the substrate processing system, theapparatus configuration information for specifying the type of theapparatus is transmitted from the newly added apparatus to themanagement server 2, and the latest reference data based on theapparatus configuration information is extended from the managementserver 2 to the newly added apparatus. In this manner, also for thenewly added apparatus, it is possible to hold unit-processing data of afavorable result concerning each recipe as reference data. As describedabove, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to performthe abnormality detection using time series data more accurately thanbefore.

3. Modified Example

In each of the above embodiments, when the reference data is changed inthe main unit or the main apparatus, the new reference data being thereference data after change is automatically extended to the sub unit orsub apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited thereto,and the reference data may be extended by the operator's operation(i.e., manually). Note that the function of manually extending thereference data as in the present modified example may be additionallyprovided in an apparatus/system in which the reference data isautomatically extended as in the above embodiments.

A procedure of the reference data extension processing in the presentmodified example will be described below with reference to the flowchartshown in FIG. 33. Note that, in the present modified example, as in thesecond embodiment, it is assumed that one substrate processing system(data processing system) is made up of one management server 2 and aplurality of substrate processing apparatuses 1. However, unlike thesecond embodiment, it is assumed that the reference data for each recipeis defined for each processing unit 22 in each substrate processingapparatus 1.

In the present modified example, first, based on a predeterminedoperation of the operator at the management server 2, a reference dataselection screen 800 for selecting reference data to be extended, forexample as shown in FIG. 34, is displayed on the display 240 in themanagement server (step S600). As shown in FIG. 34, the reference dataselection screen 800 includes an item name display area 801, a referencedata list area 802, and a Download button 803.

In the item name display area 801, the name of the item, which serves asa key for specifying the reference data and is displayed in thereference data list area 802, is displayed. “Serial Number” is an itemname representing a serial number (manufacturing number) for uniquelyspecifying the substrate processing apparatus 1. “Unit” is an item namerepresenting the processing unit 22. “Process Recipe” is an item namerepresenting a name of a recipe.

In the reference data list area 802, a list of reference data (a list ofitems serving as keys for specifying reference data) stored in thereference data global storage part 272 (see FIG. 28) of the managementserver 2 is displayed. In the example shown in FIG. 34, it is graspedthat data on the first row of the reference data list area 802represents reference data for a recipe named “Flushing test 1”, and thereference data is unit-processing data obtained by processing in theprocessing unit 22 named “Chamber1” of the substrate processingapparatus 1 with a serial number “A1230001.” The operator can select onepiece of reference data (one row) from the pieces of reference datadisplayed in the reference data list area 802.

The Download button 803 is a button for instructing the extension of thereference data selected in the reference data list area 802. Note that,when this download button 803 is pressed, an extension destinationselection screen 810 (see FIG. 35) described later is displayed beforeextension of the reference data is actually started.

After displaying of the reference data selection screen 800, theoperator selects the reference data to be extended from the referencedata displayed in the reference data list area 802 (step S610). In thisstate, the operator presses the download button 803. As a result, anextension destination selection screen 810 for selecting an extensiondestination, for example, as shown in FIG. 35, is displayed on thedisplay 240 of the management server 2 (step S620).

As shown in FIG. 35, the extension destination selection screen 810includes two list boxes 811, 812, an OK button 818, and a Cancel button819. The list box 811 is an interface for selecting the substrateprocessing apparatus 1 to be an extension destination. The list box 812is an interface for selecting the processing unit 22 to be an extensiondestination. Note that, in the list box 812, a list of the processingunits 22 provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1 selected inthe list box 811 is displayed. An OK button 818 is a button forinstructing execution to extend the reference data to the selectedextension destination. The Cancel button 819 is a button for cancelingthe extension of the reference data.

After displaying of the extension destination selection screen 810, theoperator selects the substrate processing apparatus 1 to be theextension destination by the list box 811, and further selects theprocessing unit 22 to be the extension destination by the list box 812(step S630). In this state, the operator presses the OK button 818. As aresult, the reference data global management part 271 of the managementserver 2 acquires the reference data selected in step S610 from thereference data global storage part 272 (step S640). Then, the referencedata global management part 271 transmits an update instructionnotification together with the reference data acquired in step S640 tothe extension destination selected in step S630 (step S650). Thereafter,the reference data for the target recipe is updated at the extensiondestination (step S660).

As described above, the extension of the reference data may be performedby the operator's operation (i.e., manually). Note that, in the presentmodified example, an extension destination designation part is achievedby the reference data selection screen 800 and the extension destinationselection screen 810.

Although the present invention has been described in detail above, theabove description is illustrative in all aspects and is not restrictive.It is understood that numerous other modifications and variations can bedevised without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The present application claims priority to Japanese Patent ApplicationNo. 2018-20798 filed on Feb. 8, 2018 entitled “Data Processing Method,Data Processing Apparatus, Data Processing System, and Data ProcessingProgram”, and the entire contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

What is claimed is:
 1. A data processing method for processing aplurality of pieces of unit-processing data by regarding a plurality ofpieces of time series data obtained by unit-processing asunit-processing data, the method comprising: a reference data changingstep of changing reference data which is data selected from a pluralityof pieces of unit-processing data for each unit-element and is data tobe compared with each piece of unit-processing data; and a referencedata extending step of extending new reference data which is thereference data after change by the reference data changing step to aunit-element other than the unit-element for which the reference datahas been changed in the reference data changing step.
 2. The dataprocessing method according to claim 1, wherein one unit-element isdefined as a main unit-element, and a unit-element other than the mainunit-element is defined as a sub unit-element, the reference data forthe main unit-element is changed in the reference data changing step,and the new reference data is extended to the sub unit-element in thereference data extending step.
 3. The data processing method accordingto claim 2, wherein the reference data extending step includes areference data uploading step of transmitting the new reference datafrom the main unit-element to an extension management part for managingextension of the reference data, and a reference data downloading stepof transmitting the new reference data transmitted to the extensionmanagement part in the reference data uploading step from the extensionmanagement part to the sub unit-element.
 4. The data processing methodaccording to claim 2, wherein the unit-processing is processing executedas one recipe for one substrate in a substrate processing apparatus, anddefinition as the main unit-element and the sub unit-element is made foreach recipe.
 5. The data processing method according to claim 4, whereinthe reference data extending step includes a reference data uploadingstep of transmitting the new reference data and a change notificationindicating a change in the reference data from the main unit-element toan extension management part for managing extension of the referencedata, an extension destination specifying step of specifying a recipefor which the reference data has been changed based on the new referencedata and the change notification and specifying a unit-element, definedas a sub unit-element with respect to the specified recipe, as anextension destination of the new reference data, in the extensionmanagement part, a reference data downloading step of transmitting, fromthe extension management part to the unit-element specified as theextension destination in the extension destination specifying step, thenew reference data transmitted to the extension management part in thereference data uploading step and an update instruction notification forinstructing update of the reference data, and a reference data updatingstep of updating the reference data for the recipe specified in theextension destination specifying step to the new reference data based onthe update instruction notification in the sub unit-element.
 6. The dataprocessing method according to claim 1, further comprising aunit-processing data evaluating step of calculating an evaluation valuefor unit-processing data to be evaluated based on the unit-processingdata to be evaluated and the reference data, wherein in the referencedata changing step, the reference data is changed based on theevaluation value calculated in the unit-processing data evaluation step.7. The data processing method according to claim 1, wherein theunit-element is one substrate processing apparatus.
 8. The dataprocessing method according to claim 1, wherein the unit-element is aconstituent including one processing unit for processing a substrate ina substrate processing apparatus.
 9. A data processing method in a dataprocessing system including a plurality of unit-elements, for processinga plurality of pieces of unit-processing data by regarding a pluralityof pieces of time series data obtained by unit-processing asunit-processing data, wherein the data processing system includes afirst reference data storage part that is provided for each unit-elementand stores reference data which is data selected from a plurality ofpieces of unit-processing data for each unit-element and is data to becompared with each piece of unit-processing data, a second referencedata storage part that is shared by all unit-elements and stores thereference data, and an extension management part for managing extensionof the reference data, and the method includes a configurationinformation transmitting step of transmitting, when a unit-element isnewly added, a configuration information for a new unit-element that isan newly added unit-element from the new unit-element to the extensionmanagement part, a reference data acquiring step of acquiring thereference data to be extended to the new unit-element from the secondreference data storage part based on the configuration information, inthe extension management part, a reference data transmitting step oftransmitting the reference data obtained in the reference data acquiringstep from the extension management part to the new unit-element, and areference data storing step of storing the reference data transmitted inthe reference data transmitting step in the first reference data storagepart, in the new unit-element.
 10. A data processing apparatus forprocessing a plurality of pieces of unit-processing data by regarding aplurality of pieces of time series data obtained by unit-processing asunit-processing data, the apparatus comprising: a reference data storagepart that is provided for each unit-element and stores reference datawhich is data selected from a plurality of pieces of unit-processingdata for each unit-element and is data to be compared with each piece ofunit-processing data; and a reference data extension part configured toextend reference data, which is stored in the reference data storagepart for one unit-element, to the other unit-element.
 11. A dataprocessing system for processing a plurality of pieces ofunit-processing data by regarding a plurality of pieces of time seriesdata obtained by unit-processing as unit-processing data, the systemcomprising: a reference data storage part that is provided for eachunit-element and stores reference data which is data selected from aplurality of pieces of unit-processing data for each unit-element and isdata to be compared with each piece of unit-processing data; and areference data extension part configured to extend reference data, whichis stored in the reference data storage part for one unit-element, tothe other unit-element.
 12. The data processing system according toclaim 10, further comprising a reference data changing part configuredto change the reference data stored in the reference data storage part,wherein, when the reference data is changed by the reference datachanging part, the reference data extension part automatically extendsnew reference data, which is the changed reference data, to aunit-element other than the unit-element for which the reference datahas been changed.
 13. The data processing system according to claim 10,further comprising an extension designation part for designatingreference data to be extended and a unit-element to be an extensiondestination, wherein the reference data extension part extends thereference data designated by the extension designation part to theunit-element designated by the extension designation part.
 14. Acomputer-readable recording medium having recorded therein a dataprocessing program for processing a plurality of pieces ofunit-processing data by regarding a plurality of pieces of time seriesdata obtained by unit-processing as unit-processing data, wherein thedata processing program causes a computer to execute: a reference datachanging step of changing reference data which is data selected from aplurality of pieces of unit-processing data for each unit-element and isdata to be compared with each piece of unit-processing data; and areference data extending step of extending new reference data which isthe reference data after change by the reference data changing step to aunit-element other than the unit-element for which the reference datahas been changed in the reference data changing step.